Park Theatre and Red Ladder Theatre Company present a double-bill of plays, performed in repertory from 13 May – 6 June, that deliver the human story behind contemporary British Extremism, from Blackburn-born writer Avaes Mohammad

Park Theatre and Red Ladder Theatre Company present a double-bill of plays, performed in repertory from 13 May – 6 June, that deliver the human story behind contemporary British Extremism, from Blackburn-born writer Avaes Mohammad.

Opening in the aftermath of the ‘election of a generation,’ these two connecting stories tell of an anger and resentment in working class Britain that won’t be quelled by posturing politicians.

Set in Blackburn, in the initial years from September 11th 2001, these two plays tell two halves of the same story of frustration and radicalisation, HURLING RUBBLE AT THE SUN seen through the eyes of the British Asian community, HURLING RUBBLE AT THE MOON from those of the white working class.

HURLING RUBBLE AT THE SUN, directed by Red Ladder Artistic Director Rod Dixon, tells the story of T, previously secure in his northern British Asian community, but driven to action by the growing violence that he and his mates increasingly encounter in the years following 2001. In attempting to rebuild a new landscape the only voices available come from a battered tape of Tupac and the discourse of Islamism ringing from mouths of newly-founded street prophets. His parents are stuck in a tradition that has nothing to offer him, and they don’t understand that the hatred they experience on a day to day basis has changed – ‘terrorist’ is a much more incendiary word than ‘paki’ – and that a new type of hatred requires a new kind of response.

HURLING RUBBLE AT THE MOON directed by Park Theatre Artistic Director Jez Bond, is set in the same place, but follows the story of Skef and his dad, Dean, one-time football hooligan who comes back into Skef’s life out of the blue after abandoning him as a kid. After being sacked from his job by an Asian manager, Skef starts to hang around with his childhood sweetheart Gerbil and also to join his dad down the pub, and on his marches. All Skef wants is an England in which he feels treated fairly, and feels some ownership in but when Skef finds out that Gerbil is seeing T, it all feels like it’s about to blow up in his face. This threat is new, and it needs a new kind of response.

The cast of HURLING RUBBLE is Mark Cameron (Dean) who is a Park Theatre Associate Artist and co-writer of its Christmas shows Sleeping Beauty and Rapunzel, Nicola Duffett (Mary) who is best known for her role as Debbie Bates in EastEnders , Jim English (Skef), Dinita Gohil (Major), Bharti Patel (Mrs Malik), Paige Round (Gerbil) and Ragevan Vasan (T).

Avaes Mohammad’s plays include Bhopal, In God We Trust, The Student, Shadow Companion, Crystal Kisses, Fields of Grey, Of Another World. He is currently Associate Artist with Red Ladder Theatre Company, Tamasha Theatre Company and Fellow of the Muslim Institute. He also recently founded the Lahore Agitprop Theatre Company in Pakistan.

Rod Dixon has been Artistic Director of Red Ladder since 2006, following his role as Associate Director at the Barbican Theatre in Plymouth. He has also run The Hub Theatre School in Cornwall and been an actor with several companies including Kneehigh Theatre. Directing credits for Red Ladder include Where’s Vietnam?, Forgotten Things, Riot, Rebellion & Bloody Insurrection, Ugly, Sex & Docks & Rock ‘N’ Roll, Big Society!, Promised Land, The Thing about Psychopaths and We’re Not Going Back.

Rhys Jarman was one of the winners of the 2007 Linbury Biennial Prize, for his designs of Varjak Pawfor the Opera Group. New work includes Institute for Gecko and Adriano in Syria for The Classical Opera Company. Recent theatre work includes You Have Been Upgraded for Unlimited at the Science museum, Kicking and Screaming for Tangled Feet, The Nutcracker with The Nuffield Theatre directed by Blanche McIntyre. Holes written by Tom Basden and Threeway written by DC Jackson both directed by Philip Breen. Recent outdoor work includes Burntwater and One Million for Tangled Feet and The Greenwich and Docklands International Festival and Cycle Song, an opera for the 2012 Cultural Olympiad.

To complement the production, Red Ladder Theatre Company will be hosting a specialised outreach project to introduce young people to the Hurling Rubble plays. This will involve workshops for schools, colleges and universities taking the form of a three hour Open Space discussion; a facilitated conversation which is a safe space for young people to air their views on global issues. Targeting young people of all ethnic backgrounds, the central aim of the workshops is to encourage integration by providing an opportunity to raise questions, share opinions and listen to others. The ultimate goal of the project is to educate young people about the difficult subject of radicalisation and extremism through different perceptions and increased awareness.